DAX-1 Expression in Pediatric Rhabdomyosarcomas: Another Immunohistochemical Marker Useful in the Diagnosis of Translocation Positive Alveolar Rhabdomyosarcoma

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to investigate the expression of DAX-1 in a series of pediatric rhabdomyosarcomas (RMS) with known translocation and compare it to Ap2\u3b2, known to be selectively expressed in ARMS. DESIGN: We revised a series of 71 alveolar rhabdomyosarcomas (ARMS), enrolled in the Italian Protocols RMS 79 and 96, and 23 embryonal rhabdomyosarcomas (ERMS) as controls. Before investigating Ap2\u3b2 and DAX-1, ARMS were reviewed and reclassified as 48 ARMS and 23 non-ARMS. RESULTS: Translocation positive ARMS showed a characteristic Ap2\u3b2/DAX-1+ staining pattern in 78% of cases, while 76% of classic ERMS were negative for both. Ap2\u3b2 alone was positive in 3.9% of RMS lacking translocation, whereas DAX-1 alone was positive in 25.4%. Conversely, 9% and 6% of translocation positive ARMS were positive only for DAX-1 or Ap2\u3b2, respectively. The 23 non-ARMS shared the same phenotype as ERMS but had a higher frequency of DAX-1 expression. CONCLUSIONS: DAX-1 is less specific than Ap2\u3b2, however it is a sensitive marker for translocation positive ARMS and can be helpful in their diagnosis if used in combination with Ap2\u3b2

Clinical case seminar - Hypogonadotropic hypogonadism as a presenting feature of late-onset X-linked adrenal hypoplasia congenita

Mutations in the orphan nuclear receptor DAX-1 cause X-linked adrenal hypoplasia congenita. Affected boys usually present with primary adrenal failure in early infancy or childhood. Impaired sexual development because of hypogonadotropic hypogonadism becomes apparent at the time of puberty. We report adult-onset adrenal hypoplasia congenita in a patient who presented with hypogonadism at 28 yr of age. Although he had no clinical evidence of adrenal dysfunction, compensated primary adrenal failure was diagnosed by biochemical testing. Semen analysis showed azoospermia, and he did not achieve fertility after 8 months of treatment with gonadotropins. A novel Y380D DAX-1 missense mutation, which causes partial loss of function in transient gene expression assays, was found in this patient. This case demonstrates that partial loss-of-function mutations in DAX1 can present with hypogonadotropic hypogonadism and covert adrenal failure in adulthood. Further, an important role for DAX-1 in spermatogenesis in humans is confirmed, supporting findings in the Dax1 (Ahch) knockout mouse

The level crossing and inverse statistic analysis of German stock market index (DAX) and daily oil price time series

The level crossing and inverse statistics analysis of DAX and oil price time series are given. We determine the average frequency of positive-slope crossings, $\nu_{\alpha}^+$, where $T_{\alpha} =1/\nu_{\alpha}^+$ is the average waiting time for observing the level $\alpha$ again. We estimate the probability $P(K, \alpha)$, which provides us the probability of observing $K$ times of the level $\alpha$ with positive slope, in time scale $T_{\alpha}$. For analyzed time series we found that maximum $K$ is about 6. We show that by using the level crossing analysis one can estimate how the DAX and oil time series will develop. We carry out same analysis for the increments of DAX and oil price log-returns,(which is known as inverse statistics) and provide the distribution of waiting times to observe some level for the increments.Comment: 19 pages, 8 figure

Forecasting stock market volatility and the informational efficiency of the DAX-index options market

Alternative strategies for predicting stock market volatility are examined. In out-of-sample forecasting experiments implied-volatility information, derived from contemporaneously observed option prices or history-based volatility predictors, such as GARCH models, are investigated, to determine if they are more appropriate for predicting future return volatility. Employing German DAX-index return data it is found that past returns do not contain useful information beyond the volatility expectations already reflected in option prices. This supports the efficient market hypothesis for the DAX-index options market

The redefinition of Europe's Less Favoured Areas

The support scheme for farming in less-favoured areas, established by the European Union in 1975, marked a major change in the nature of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) by introducing for the first time regional categories. It also represented the initiation of direct annual payments to farmers, an approach which was to expand greatly in the 1990s and thereafter. Over a long period it had remained the only significant structural measure of agricultural policy with a territorial dimension. Only recent policy reforms changed this situation: commodity market support was gradually decreased and, on the other hand, the environmental implications of policy measures were increasingly emphasised. Discussions on the interrelations of the Less-Favoured Areas (LFA) scheme with Agri-Environmental Measures (AEM) and other elements of the Rural Development Programmes (RDP) have been intensified as the political and financial weight of the programmes gained in importance. This paper focuses on the objectives and relevance of the LFA support scheme, its application in the EU and the main elements of the debate for the redefinition of LFA support. From the very beginning, LFA policy was conceived as a structural policy aimed at the prevention of land abandonment, to preserve the farming population in these areas and maintain cultural landscapes. In this regard, the instrument was one of the first measures to address environmentally beneficial farming systems, and thus reveals high coincidence with High Nature Value (HNV) farming systems. The three types of LFA, mountain areas, other LFAs and areas affected by specific handicaps take account of the range of geographical differences in the production difficulties of EU agriculture. The increased focus on environmental aims resulted in a discussion of the ‘intermediate’ areas, the category of other LFAs. It has been proposed that the socio-economic criterion in determining these areas should be dropped, but the aim to maintain land management in marginal areas would be kept. Meanwhile, the decision on the redefinition of the LFAs has been postponed (to 2010). Nevertheless the issue will keep a central role in policy discussions of the future Rural Development Programmes.Less-Favoured Areas; Common Agricultural Policy; rural development; mountain areas

A partially linear approach to modelling the dynamics of spot and futures prices

In this paper we consider the dynamics of spot and futures prices in the presence of arbitrage. We propose a partially linear error correction model where the adjustment coefficient is allowed to depend non-linearly on the lagged price difference. We estimate our model using data on the DAX index and the DAX futures contract. We find that the adjustment is indeed nonlinear. The linear alternative is rejected. The speed of price adjustment is increasing almost monotonically with the magnitude of the price difference